Posted: Jun 12, 2026
ValleyCats Pitcher Nate Nabholz Headed to San Francisco Giants
TROY, NY – The Tri-City ValleyCats are proud to announce the transfer of pitcher Nate Nabholz’s contract to the San Francisco Giants. This “The Joe to The Show” Update is presented by Curtis Lumber.
So far this season, Nabholz has 22 strikeouts against just three walks in 18.2 innings of work. He slammed the door on a Trois-Rivieres bases-loaded jam in the eighth inning on Tuesday, June 9, before he struck out two in the ninth for his third save of the season in the ValleyCats 7-2 win.
The 6-foot-5-inch, 25-year-old from Pottsville, Pennsylvania, was a rock-solid reliever last season for the ValleyCats as he appeared in 21 games, striking out 30 in 31 innings of work while walking nine. He averaged 9.4 strikeouts per nine innings with a 3.08 ERA as a ValleyCat.
Over six years of college ball, two seasons with the East Carolina Pirates and four with the Towson Tigers, Nabholz struck out 163 batters against 50 walks in 174.2 innings (primarily in relief).
The signing is the fourth by a Major League organization in the past two seasons for Tri-City players, as the ValleyCats remain committed to player development.
Left-handed starting pitcher Stephen Still was signed by the Baltimore Orioles in May.
Right-handed pitcher Nick DeCarlo signed with the Milwaukee Brewers, and catcher Miguel Useche signed with the Chicago Cubs last season.
Over 115 Tri-City alumni have gone from The Joe to The Show since the team was established in 2002, including stars such as Jose Altuve (2009), George Springer (2011), and current Houston Astros ace Hunter Brown (2019).
Since 2021, when Tri-City joined the Frontier League, 19 ValleyCats have joined Major League organizations. Kumar Rocker (2022) - now in the Texas Rangers starting rotation – is a recent notable Frontier League-era ValleyCat to reach the majors.